The Disappearance of Reagan Summers
Reagan Lynn Summers (1995- Missing since 2017), otherwise known as ReaganXO, was a 21-year-old beauty vlogger who disappeared in March of 2017 under mysterious circumstances. She had an active social media presence on multiple platforms, which led to devoted fans called "Reaganites". Reagan produced a steady stream of beauty and lifestyle media content until she was injured in an accident in February of 2017. After fans accused her of faking her injuries for profit, Summers produced various disturbing videos that have since become viral. She was reported missing on March 21st, 2017. Early Life Reagan was born in Boulder, Colorado to parents Sally Mae Summers (née McCann) and Jefferson Whittaker Summers. Sally Mae was a former beauty pageant queen from Dallas, Texas, where she won the titles of "Miss South Dallas" and "Chili Festival Queen". Jefferson was a prominent banker from Williamsburg, VA, before being convicted of fraud in 1993. He served 14 months in a minimum security Federal Prison Camp in Florence, Colorado, before being released and beginning a successful career as a life coach. Jefferson was the author of "Rock Hard Justice: How Prison Changed Me" and "Chicken Soup for the Business Man Convicted of Fraud's Soul". The couple died in an unfortunate pontoon accident in 2015, leaving Reagan a substantial inheritance. Reagan has stated that her parents had an important role in her life. In an interview at VidCon, Reagan discussed a fondness for her mother Sally Mae. She said: "My mom was, like, my rock. She taught me everything about beauty. She used to tell me 'never get caught without at least some mascara, because you never know who you're going to see' which is honestly such a great motto to live by! The funeral people told me her makeup was flawless even after they pulled her out of the swamp water. It was sad but I laughed for sure! Total mom move!". Reagan was born with a Port Wine Stain birthmark, which she embraces in her makeup videos. Career After graduating from the Shining Mountain Waldorf School in Boulder, CO, Reagan began attending the Athens, GA campus of the University of North Georgia. She majored in Nutritional Sciences and Fashion Merchandising, with a minor in Photography. She stated in a since-deleted video that she aspired to be a professional spokesmodel. Reagan began her blog in early 2012, where she posted various musings as well as lifestyle advice. She began posting vlogs and makeup tutorials onYoutube in 2013. She also had an active fan following on Spotify, where she had multiple popular playlists. In a deleted 2013 post, Reagan told her fans that she initially had "ReaganXO" as her text message signature, which gave her the idea of creating a blog with the same title. Reagan received endorsement deals from FitTea, a "detox" tea that is meant to aid weight loss, and Plexus, a weight loss supplement. It is rumored that she was working with the brand Sugarpill Cosmetics on a signature line of liquid lipsticks before she disappeared. Reagan had various famous catchphrases, including "Reaganites Unite!" and "Be authentic, be beautiful, be you". She had promised fans that ReaganXO branded items would be released in January 2017, but such merchandise was never made available. Accident and Disappearance Reagan was an active blogger and vlogger up until February of 2017 when she was allegedly involved in some sort of accident. In a video titled "I SERIOUSLY INJURED MY FACE IN AN ACCIDENT | STORYTIME", Reagan claimed that she had been fallen victim to an accident but was recovering well. Fans responded lovingly to this clip, and Reagan gained 20,000 subscribers after the video was posted. One week later, Reagan posted another video explaining that the prognosis of her injury was worse than expected. She mentioned that multiple expensive surgeries were necessary, which prompted fans to raise upwards of $17,000 on crowdfunding app Tilt Tilt in only 2 weeks. In response, Reagan posted an emotional video thanking her fans for their support. In these videos, Reagan is seen wearing an increasing number of nude bandages. On March 2nd, 2017, twitter user @reaganxoexposed tweeted out a photo (☀https://twitter.com/reaganxoexposed) that was reportedly taken earlier that day of Summers without any noticeable bandages or facial injuries. This image caused fan outrage, and led to multiple demands and petitions for Reagan to return to money she had been donated. As a result of this backlash, Tilt deleted the amount raised on the "Save Reagan" page, although Summers still received the initial donations. Reagan posted a video 2 days after tweet went viral claiming that the image was doctored. In this video she is pictured wearing gauze over her entire face. On March 9th, 2017, Reagan posted an apology video that seemed to show blood dripping from her mask. While the video seemed to leave her fans on a cliffhanger, she uploaded one final video nearly two weeks later. On March 20th, 2017, Reagan posted a video where she is seen applying makeup to a mask and whispering into the camera. This video was widely ridiculed by commenters as a hoax. However, she was never seen again. Fan and Police Theories The police were first called after two University of Georgia students discovered a mask covered in what appeared to be fresh blood on March 22nd, 2017, while on a hike by the North Oconee River. The discovery was documented via one of the students' snapchat story. Athens Police have confirmed that the blood found on the mask belonged to Reagan Summers, and that there is now an active investigation into the disappearance. Athens-Clarke County Police Department has stated that no vehicular accident report mentioning Summers exists, and that her 2007 BMW 3-Series was found without any notable damage. Signs of a struggle were reportedly found in her apartment. Sex offender Johnny Lee Carson, who lived half a mile away from Summers, was questioned about the disappearance, but he was released 12 hours later due to insufficient evidence. Although Private Detective Brenda Stanton has stated that the police department is convinced Reagan committed suicide, she does not personally believe that this is the case. On April 19th, 2017, Athens Police released a sketch of what a witness claims to have seen while walking on an empty road at approximately 3:40 AM. Although not explicitly stated by police, it is widely theorized by fans that this sighting proves Reagan is still alive. Fan theories include kidnapping, murder, and suicide. A popular conclusion is that Reagan was kidnapped by Carson, who then forced her to make the series of videos in order to explain her ultimate murder. Carson's attorney, Yolanda Smith, has gone on record saying that Carson has an alibi for the night in question and had no knowledge of Summers prior to his arrest. Another theory is that Reagan suffered from body dysmorphia, and fabricated the accident before mutilating her own face and either faking her death or committing suicide. "Reagan Truthers", as they refer to themselves, advocate that Reagan was in fact involved in an unreported accident which led to a progressive injury that ultimately claimed her life as she swam in the North Oconee River. A substantial amount of commenters believe that Reagan was possessed, which led to her strange behavior and disappearance. Media Coverage Reagan's case was covered in a May 1st, 2017 episode of "Into Thin Air", a podcast by true crime aficionado Mak Wattenbarger. The episode was titled "Crazy Beautiful: The Disappearance of Reagan Summers", and it included new information from Private Detective Brenda Stanton as well as a previously unreleased audio recording of a 911 call made from Reagan's apartment at 4:00 AM on March 21st, 2017. The call was initially thought to be a hoax, so police were not actually dispatched to the premises.